Pulitzer Prize-winning Biographer to Speak at Inauguration of Millsaps' Eleventh President

Jon MeachamPhoto credit: Damien Donck

Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Jon Meacham will speak about "The Liberal Arts in a Global Age" on Thursday, October 7 at 10:30 a.m. during the inauguration of Millsaps College's eleventh president Dr. Robert W. Pearigen.

The inauguration will take place outside in the Bowl at Millsaps College. The public is invited.

Meacham is a former editor of Newsweek and author of three New York Times bestsellers American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation, Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship and American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House.

While at Millsaps, Meacham will participate in the roundtable discussion "A Shining Light: Millsaps in the Civil Rights Movement: A 50 Year Retrospective" on Wednesday, October 6 from 2:30 to 4 p.m. in the Leggett Center. Other participates include former Governor William Winter, Clarion-Ledger investigative reporter and MacArthur Fellow Jerry Mitchell, Millsaps alumna Jeanne Luckett and civil rights expert Leslie McLemore. The public is invited, and admission is free.

In preparation for the event, all incoming Millsaps students read Voices in Our Blood: America's Best on the Civil Rights Movement. The literary anthology, edited by Meacham, is a collection of distinguished nonfiction about the civil rights movement.

Pearigen assumed the presidency of Millsaps on July 1. His appointment was announced in February after a national search for the College's new leader. Pearigen comes to Millsaps from The University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, where he served as a college administrator and professor for more than 20 years.

Pearigen is a 1976 Phi Beta Kappa graduate of The University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee He earned his master's and doctorate in political science from Duke University. His post-graduate study included constitutional law, judicial process and political theory.

Inauguration and associated events will precede homecoming weekend. For a complete schedule of inauguration and homecoming events that are open to the public, visit www.millsaps.edu.